Dock & Piling Cleaning in Boynton Beach, FL

Harbor Estates docks sit where the C-16 meets the Intracoastal, in a slow zone, with water that swings between fresh and salt.

Intracoastal docks between East Ocean Avenue and the Lantana line take tide and wake on top of the growth, and their lifts and floating docks grow barnacles on the wheels that scrape a hull at every launch.

Harbor Estates is about 40 homes on the Intracoastal with the Boynton Canal as its northern border, and the canal's manatee slow zone runs from the S-41 structure at US-1 east to the Intracoastal. The C-16 is one of three canals, with C-51 and C-17, that bring fresh water into the Lake Worth Lagoon, and a Harbor Estates dock sits right where that fresh water meets the salt. ZIP 33436 covers the neighborhood; 33435 covers the marina and is shared with Ocean Ridge across the water.

A Harbor Estates dock sits where the C-16 empties into the Intracoastal, and the canal's releases change the salt from week to week, so the growth on its pilings is variable but never absent; the multi-point inspection after cleaning is how an owner learns whether the wood under the oysters is still sound. Intracoastal docks between East Ocean Avenue and the Lantana line take tide and wake. A wooden piling found going is wrapped in HDPE or sleeved with a Snap Jacket in place.

The C-16's slow zone east of US-1 keeps the water calm enough to work at most hours. Boynton Harbor Marina's pilings belong to the CRA, so a slip holder there gets the boat cleaned and the marina keeps its own structure. Ocean Inlet Park's day slips across the water are the county's.

Boynton Beach docks stand on the Intracoastal Waterway, the Boynton Canal (C-16) and the Lake Worth Lagoon, most of them behind homes in Harbor Estates. ZIP codes 33435 and 33436: no pickaxes, no chisels, inspection included.

Growth hides damage, so the inspection follows the cleaning, while the diver can see the structure.

• Shipworm holes in wood and concrete pilings: enough of them and a piling snaps.
• Oyster damage on wooden pilings, which eats the wood while hiding it.
• Floating-dock wheels and hydro-hoist hydraulic lines, where barnacles cut and jam.
• Whether a wrap or a Snap Jacket sleeve would extend the piling's life.

How often docks and pilings need it. Seawalls and concrete pilings: cleaned annually. In our experience, unwrapped wooden pilings on South Florida canals often need help after 10 to 15 years; a wrap from the mud to 2 ft above high tide adds at least 20 years.

Full dock and piling cleaning guide